Did brown gunk coat your car? Blame dust and ash

Did brown gunk coat your car? Blame faraway dust and ash

Published 5:30 am, Thursday, March 20, 2008

There is light rain, freezing rain, heavy rain, sideways rain and even a song, Purple Rain.

Now, thanks to wildfires and dust storms far south of the border, Houston knows all about ash-filled, muddy, stick-all-over-your-car rain.

Thousands of cars and trucks were covered in a brown film Wednesday after being pelted with globules of raindrops carrying dust and ash from as far away as Central Mexico.

"I've heard of acid rain, but I've never heard of dirty rain," said Jason Smith, a mental health worker who was spraying down his grime-covered sedan at a Montrose car wash. "My car looks like it has been on vacation in Mexico City or wherever."

Joe Baskin, a forecaster for the National Weather Service, said the particles were first spotted via satellite Tuesday as they swirled in plumes just outside Mexico City.

The wind, which at about 20,000 feet altitude was blowing as fast as 70 mph, carried them into Texas and mixed with rainstorms, Baskin said.

"It is nothing to worry about," said Baskin, who added late Wednesday that the front that brought the rain had likely already dumped any dust it carried.

From Houston to San Antonio, there were reports of the brown rain frustrating motorists as well as puzzling them.

"The car should be, like, polished, but it is not; it is all dusted up," said Rafael Matheus, a Houston communications technician.

He woke up Wednesday in the Heights to find his silver-colored sport utility vehicle with a different tint. "It is kind of a brownish poo-poo kind of color," he said of the residue.

Steve Bramlet, a new car sales manager at Honda of Clear Lake, said the brown rain dirtied as many of 450 of the dealership's vehicles.

Any aftereffects were washed away by a crew using a water tank mounted on a pickup, high-powered hoses and large shammies, he said.

"The thought that went through my mind was, I was back in West Texas after a dirt storm," Bramlet said. "I didn't see anything extreme, but they were dirty."

Business was especially good at the Mister Car Wash on Kirby.

"Phenomenal day for a Wednesday," said Jeff Chambers, the manager there.

He estimated nearly 1,600 cars were washed during a 10-hour shift.

"It is great for my business," he said.

Patricia Rojas, who works in data entry, washed her car immediately after leaving the office.

"It looked really bad. I couldn't even see through the windshield," she said. "It was on everybody's car. That is what made it so interesting."